Interchangeable directory strip



Patented .lune lr6, 1925.

Be it kn'ownlthat LGERGE" MGKINTO'SH; av vcitizen of E-tlie United "States nl?4 America, and-resident of Oceanside', inftlrecounty 'of Nassau andMS-tittefqo'f' New" Yorl,l-ha\fe" in` ventedr new fand t' vlinp"rved ilnterchangeableA Directory Strips', of which' -thekfollowln'g Ais a ifu'll; clear; andfiactf :description This-'invention relatesto dire'ctorielssuchl asarveusdf m'J office buil a'ndffhas'` 'parLi ticular reference` to'f improvement in the" naine :bearing strips? n The 1 "1i-Ventron@ @empl-@lieues a directa-y bends'l infA connection tvvitlfdirectry strips having interchangeableE means f f o`fconnec` tion, gravity actuated `l fking 'ydev'i'ces for retaining thefi stripsagainsti separation and movable K' td "a" release f pbsi'tin" l 'uponl inver!- sionof theconnectel sti-ips iivlie're'by"-to?permit ofiseparatiothe "The invention 'f rtherconteiip'lates-` diL rectory strips1whichincliide-ai nainel bearing Sea-,ree 'mi-a -reeiffufabei btenngeseeeee which are separ'ablei Wherf'th strip'sf'f are disassociate'tl andfwliich are lloekedfagainst separation when the strips are in associated relation;` n Y y Y The invention f p rthernibre ainis to?A pro'- v'ide a' directory stripcostru'ction VWlfiicliflis simple, inepensive'andeicieitlJ l lVith thel'above"rcitedafd other objects in vient.'reffeienceshad to thelfllovvilg speciication-j and4 gs* in which7 there is exhibited 'oneexampleor"enbdinent' of Figure 1 is aprspectiveview illustrating ar plurality of associated and locked directory strips constructed in accordance with the invention.

V isik acsid'ewfiew partly: section illust'i atrngf'fone of 'the-'directory 'str1 pswith* Fig. B-i's a vertical"sectional view "through the' strips'fin' associated flocked* Referrin'gi to i the drawings by 1 characters* off "reference the improved 'A directory stri'p` ccnstituting; the presentv vinvention includes afnarn'e 'bearing' section 10 and a room num? ber bearing' section" Y11V theE former being iin-` scribed"I onfone ofl its side"faces' with the name l2 andthe latter on one 'ofit'sf side" faces "Witli`=tli'e room'lnumber 13.H In Yorder to' "provide"V a' "longitudinally slid'able means connectionbetiveenfthe strips to"maintanrv tlie` sam'effagainst vrelative lateralor verticali separatiomftlie sectionlO of each strip:i is prcvid'ed' respectively on its'npper andl'l'ove'r faces `Withfaztoiggue 14 and'fgroo've l5' extendinglongitudinally thereof andthe section" l1Y` ofeachstrip "SisG similarly formed with a f longitudinally? "extendingftonguesl and groove`17 respectively on kits upper and lower faces; thesaid tongues and `groves being of dove-tail Vconfi'gration or an eq'uiw alent formation which limits the 'separation and"associatioof the strips with each'other to't tlfe longitudinal 'slidingfunovement In order to f provide 7 a Vmeans Y of connection" bei tWer-the" sebtionslandll'f'oif` each strip f Which fprevents separation thereof Y except Whenf* the strips -"aredisasse1nbled; the said confronting? ends with @threaded stemy v18 an'd" a "threaded recess 19 Where/bythe 'sec'- tions are detachably;associated With-'each other! and' wheni properly"4 associated the tongues an'dl grooves-14 and i 16' and l5 land 17' are" dispesed in 'K alirrenrent whereby the tongues? of th'e` sections offene strip may'ibe mated-With thegrovesfofthesections ofan a'ee'nt strip by f relative longitudinal sliding move'ineIi-t thereof:asf'illustratedi In order to Vproa de means fo'rloclrifnfg the relativeL long is provided With a keeper opening 2()V extending inwardly from its upper face and said section is provided With a gravitation- 5v is: aw'ertical' sectional View' taken ally projectable lock pin 21 from its lower face which is designed to engage in the keeper opening 20 of the-.next adjacent subterposed mated strip element when the stack of strips are in a right-side-up position. In order to prevent-loss of the lock pins and t-o provide means for permanently associating the same with the strips, the said pins are provided with enlarged heads22 which are movable'in a correspondingly enlarged bore 23 in the strip, the outer end of which bore is closed by a countersunk cover plate 24 having a central aperture 25 conforming to the size of the lock pin shank diameter.

Then it is desired to disassociate the strip from each otherthe stack of strips is inverted as illustrated in F ig. 4 whereby the lock pins gravitate to ay position to fully retract the shanks from the keeper openings 20 of the adjacent strips, thus permitting a longitudinal relative sliding movement of the strips to separate the same from each other. When thus separated, it is obvious that the sections l0 and 1l may be separated by unscrewing the threaded stem 18` from the threaded recess 19.

The plan or scheme of the invention is to equip the various office buildings with standard directories having directory strips of thisr type so that each tenantpurchases a strip section l0 which is owned by the tenant and `may be taken with him to other offices for use intheir directories by merely' attaching the proper room number thereto. It is thus 4obvious from the foregoing that the expense of maintaining oflice building directories will be greatly reduced by employing directory strips constructed in accordance 4with the invention.

I claim:

l. In a building directory consisting of a stack of indicia bearing strips, a longitudinal sliding connection between the meeting faces of the strips for holding the same against transverse and vertical separation, and gravity actuated locking means for preventing relative sliding movement of the strips in a. direction to disconnect the same, said locking nreans Vbeing releasable upon inversion of the stack.

2. In a building directory consisting of a stack of indicia bearing strips, a longitudinal sliding connection between the meeting faces of the strips for holding the same against transverse and vertical separation, and gravity actuated locking means for preventing relative sliding movement of thc strips 1n a direction to disconnect the same,

said locking means being releasable upon inversion of the stack, the said strips comprising longitudinally separable sections adapted to respectively bear the name and room number and a means of connection between said sections permitting of separation thereof only when the strips are disassociated.

3. In a. building directory consisting of a stack of superimposed indicia bearing strips, interengageable means of connection between said strips for locking the same against rela-tive displacement, said means being releasable upon inversion of the stack.

4. In a building directory consisting of a stack of superimposed indicia bearing strips, means on the confronting upper and lower faces of the strips for connecting the same against relative vertical and lateral separation and gravity operated means for locking the strips against relativ-e longitudinal separation, said means being gravitationally releasable upon inversion of the stack.

In a building directory including a plurality of superimposed strips, a dovetail tongue and groove provided respectively on the upper and lower faces thereof for establishing a connection between the adjacent strips by a longitudinal sliding movement and gravity means for connecting and maintaining the strips in alinement against relative longitudinal sliding movement.

6. In a building directory including a plurality of superimposed strips, a dove-tail tongue and groove provided respectively on the upper and lower faces thereof for cstablishing a connection between the adjacent stripsby a longitudinal sliding movement. and gravity means for coi'inecting and maintaining the strips in alinement against relative longitudinal sliding movement, said latter means comprising perforated portions in the upper face ofA each strip and weighted lock pins projectable from the lower face of each strip and into the keeper openings when the stack is in right-side-up position.V

7. In a building directory including a plurality of superimposed strips, a dove-tail tongue and groove provided respectively on the upper and lower faces thereof for lestablishing al connection between the adjacent strips by a longitudinal sliding morement and gravity means for connecting and maintaining the strips in alinement against relative longitudinal sliding movement, said latter means comprising perforated portions in the upper face of each strip and weighted lock pins projectabl'e from the lower face of each strip and into the keeper openings when the stack is in right-side-up position, said lock pins being retractiblc from the keeper openings uponiuvcrsion of the stack.

GEORGE AMAGKIFOSH. 

